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Thursday, August 25, 2016

2016's textbook-free Intro to BioAnth course

This is an abridged syllabus for my course this fall. Apologies for any formatting issues, but copying and pasting from Word into Blogger isn't a party. For background on my textbook-free approach and overall philosophy for teaching evolution, please see this post and the links therein. Cheers to all you learners, teachers, and professors!

Fall 2016

APG 201: Human Origins and Evolution

3 credits

Dr. Holly Dunsworth

Course Description

The biocultural evolution of humans. An investigation into humankind’s place in nature, including a review of the living primates, human genetics and development, evolutionary theory, and the human fossil record. Fulfills both the General Education outcomes A1 (STEM knowledge) and B4 (information literacy).

Required reading

•Your Inner Fish by Neil Shubin

•The Incredible Unlikeliness of Being by Alice Roberts

•Additional articles are linked in the syllabus, or posted on our course site on Sakai

Non-required reference

•Biological Anthropology, 3rd Edition by Stanford, et al. (2013, Pearson) – standard textbook (a copy is on reserve at the library, along with Shubin and Roberts)

Quizzes 1, 2, and 3 (15% each); Research Project (15%; a two part exercise in information literacy, evolutionary thinking, and writing); Portfolio (40%; a thin folder or binder containing all the assignments in chronological order.)

Schedule

Unit 1. Observe and Explain - This view of life. Our place in nature. What is the anthropological perspective? What about the biocultural? What is the scientific approach to understanding human origins? What is a human? What are human traits? How do humans fit on the Tree of Life? What is evolution?

7-Sep 1.1-Introduction to course (reflecting on knowledge to spark semester)

9-Sep1.2-Overview of course (syllabus, anthropology, etc...)

12-Sep1.3-Scientific process

14-Sep1.4-Linnaeus and the Order Primates

16-Sep1.5-Overview of Primate taxonomy; Diet

19-Sep1.6-Primate locomotion and encephalization

21-Sep1.7-Primate tool use and communication

23-Sep1.8-Primate sociality

26-Sep1.9-Evolution and Darwin's evidence

28-Sep1.10-Phylogeny

30-Sep1.11-no class today

3-Oct1.12-Modern evidence Darwin wishes he had

5-OctQuiz 1

Unit 2. Explain and Predict - Explaining the similarities and differences. How evolution works. Why are we like our parents but not exactly? Why are we like other species but not exactly? How did human traits and human variation evolve? How does evolution occur? How do we know what the last common ancestor (LCA) was like?

7-Oct2.1-Inheritance and gene expression, 1

10-Octn/a-Columbus Day, classes do not meet

12-Oct2.2-Inheritance and gene expression, 2

14-Oct2.3-Inheritance and gene expression, 3

17-Oct2.4-Mutation and gene flow

19-Oct2.5-Natural selection

21-Oct2.6-More natural selection; Genetic drift

24-Oct2.7-Malaria resistance and lactase persistence

26-Oct2.8-Building evolutionary scenarios

28-Oct2.9- Origins of Bipedalism; Species and speciation

31-Oct2.10-Genomics, molecular clocks, and the LCA

2-NovQuiz 2-

Unit 3. Test and Observe - Evolving humans, past and present. Ancient evidence for our extinct hominin relatives. Modern human origins and variation. The cultural controversy over evolution.How did human traits evolve? How and why do humans vary? Should we look to our ancestors as a lifestyle guide? Are we still evolving? Is evolution racist? Why is human evolution misunderstood and why is it controversial?

·In a half-page or
more: Write about your primate video viewing experience, for example, you might
write about what you saw, at face value, or you might want to write about what
defied your expectations or what surprised you, or what you would like to learn
more about. Also: Without looking at
any resources except for these films, come up with some categories for the
different types of primate locomotion, give those categories names and
definitions, and list which species in the films fall into which categories
you’ve created.

·In a half-page or
more: What the heck is this Sonic hedgehog thing that Shubin’s talking about?

2.2

Assigned Reading/viewing

·YIF, Chapter 4: Teeth Everywhere – Shubin

Portfolio Assignment

·In a half-page or
more: Teeth make better fossils than bones and so they preserve more often and
fill up the fossil record. If you want to do paleontology, you need to get excited
about teeth. Why are teeth exciting?

·In a half-page or
more: After reading the Shubin chapters… Is it fair to say that when you smell
something, that something is touching your brain? Why is it called the eyeless
gene if you can have it and still have eyes? How does hearing work? What does
your ear do besides hear, and how? What does drinking lots of alcohol do to
your ears?

·In a half-page or more:
Describe all the factors you can think of that contributed to the skin color
you have today, right now. Would you be answering this question, in this
course, if your skin color were different? Why or why not?

(Plus whatever we accomplished in class in the Skin Color workbook and any homework I assigned to do with it.)

·In a half-page or
more: After re-reading the essay you wrote in class on Day 1.1 ("What is
evolution?") compose a letter to yourself highlighting what you were right
about and what you were wrong about or what was incomplete about your answer
based on what you learned this semester.

(Plus whatever we accomplished in class in the Skin Color workbook and any homework I assigned to do with it.)

·In a half-page or
more: Briefly describe what you learned this semester and what, if anything, it
means to you. Also, be sure to reflect on what you're still left wondering and describe
how you could find the answers to your remaining questions.

Extra credit!!! Make a time machine then go back to the
start of the semester, attend classes, take notes, read all of the things,
think about all of the things, complete the assignments, and study for the
quizzes.

You are a Homo sapiens. We are all Homo sapiens.

And no Homo sapiens who doesn’t know their species will be given a letter grade for this course.

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